The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-05-22
THE POPE CATL1N" CASE.
The Libel Against the Steamer Dif
missed by Judge Speer.

missed Dy JuuSo OPccr.
The libel case of the United States against
the steamer Pope Catlin was tried in the
United States District Court before Judge
Speer yesterday The Pope Catlin was
charged with four violations of the naviga-
ton laws on the occasion of an excursion on
April IL from Savannah to Tybee, through
Warsaw Sound and back to Savannah by
way of Thunderbolt, for each Of which the
government claimed that the vessel had be-
come liable to penalty of $500, and for
which she had been seized.
The first charge was that the vessel had
made the excursion without getting special
permit from the local inspector, stating
how many passengers she could carry in
addition to the number allowed under her
certificate for her usual trips and the limit
of the route she was to take on the excur-
sion. On this charge the evil
dence showed that the regular GER
tificate, under which the boat
was navigated, allowed her to be used on
the waters of the district of Savannah, and
that the boat did not on this excursion take
more passengers than was allowed on her
regular trips The court held that as she
did not go out of the waters of the district
of Savannah she was not required to get
special permit to make the excursion
The second charge was that she had gone
on the excursion not having kept in conve-
nient and accessible places good life pre-
server on float for every passenger and each
of the crew which the inspectors certificate
allowed her to carry The evidence showed
that the original certificate, which was
issued to the steamer at New London, Conn.
on June /, 1885, and under which she was
being navigated by Endorsement of the
inspectors in this district, allowed her to
carry AS passengers, including the crew.
The evidence of the government iiispec-
tors was that on the day after the excursion
they questioned the Captain about his life
saving apparatus, and at his request they
went ON board the steamer to inspect it and
found only 1877 life preServers in good con-
dition. The others were not fit for use and
some of the rejected ones when held up by
the bands broke the bands by their weight.
They saw no floats on board, and no printed
notices calling passengers attention to the
place where the life preservers were kept
The Captain admitted that he had taken
2S3 passengers on the excursion. One pas
senger testified that he had thought of a
possible accident while on the trip, and had
looked for life preservers, but could not
find any. The Captain testified that Mr..
Headman, the inspector, had for some time
treated him very discourteously, and for
that reason he had allowed the inspectors
where the life preservers were, but that the
negro pilot assisted them.
After the inspectors reported him short he
found out that they had not counted twenty
or thirty preservers under the seats in the
ladies' saloon, and that Inspector Laird
afterward came back and found them in
good condition. He further testified
that there were at the time
eighty-six floats ON board. He also
f,,t, Al1A AaeA &c
maker who, after the seizure, repaired the
| sixty-six life preservers which had been re
| jected as bad, which was to the effect that
while the shoulder straps to most of them
were gone OF bad that thirty of them had
stout rope cords to be tied around the waist
and in his opinion they were as good without
shoulder straps as with them.
| The Captain also went on to show that he
had after the seizure complied with all the
requirements of the local inspectors, anG
that although the inspectors had inspected
his boat month before, they had made nc
complaint of anything being wrong The
defense claimed that the vessel was provided
for 3l3 passengers, and only took 283, anc
therefore had not violated the law.
The court held that the evidence of the
inspectors was not satisfactory as to the con
dition of all the life preseryers which they
had rejected, and that the probability wa
that if the inspectors had requested the Cap
tain to show them around the boat they
would have seen the floats and preserver
which were overlooked. 1t also appeared
that the Captain had tried TO conform to tn,
law, and if the Inspectors had properl,
performed their duty when the vessel cam
into the district, and they Endorsed her Ger
tifcate by making the examination thel
and notifying the Captain of any defects il
her equipment as required by law, Their
was little doubt but that the Captain woult
have promptly complied with the law Tn
court held that the law upon which tn
other charges were based was not applica
BILE to inland waters. A decree was ren
dered disinissing the libel at the cost of tn
United States. The District Attorney vii
appeal the case to the Circuit Court.